We held a tasting of four wines from Bordeaux’s Right Bank on Tuesday, which went really well. It was a casual drop-in style tasting, and we had about 15 people participate. The overall reaction was quite positive, so we’ll be repeating them often. (We’ll be doing one this Tuesday, actually – we had a disappointingly poor reaction to the seminar that was scheduled, so I’m changing it into another casual tasting. It’ll be a champagne taste-off; check our events page for details.)
The wines were:
2003 Chateau de Fontenay, Cotes de Castillon ($13.95)
2003 was a very hot vintage, but this wine displays none of the pruniness or overripeness that you might expect. Right-bank wines generally did better in ‘03 because there’s more clay soil as opposed to the gravel-dominated soil on the left bank, and since clay retains water better than free-draining gravel, when the heat hit the vines on clay soil had more water to help them make it through. The Fontenay is 90% Merlot, 5% Cab. Sauv., and 5% Cab. Franc. Good acidity, lots of fresh cherry and red plum flavors, nice balance, no overt oak influence. Not the most complex Bordeaux, but drinking well for the price. I think this would be a great food wine.
2005 Chateau Ste. Colombe, Cotes de Castillon ($21.95)
If I had to pick one of these wines to drink now, it would be this one. It’s lush and open, with a fuller body and darker fruit than the Fontenay, and some noticeable toasty oak that’s well integrated. Dark cherries and black plums, with a hint of chocolate. I think Cotes de Castillon is a very underrated AOC; it’s one of the “satellite” appellations of the Right Bank, but unlike most of them that have very little connection with the top two regions of Pomerol & St. Emilion, Cotes de Castillon is a logical extension of St. Emilion, with a very similar limestone / clay soil structure. Producers in St. Emilion are increasingly realizing its potential and buying chateaux and vineyards there – Ste. Colombe is owned by the owners of Chateau Pavie & Chateau Monbousquet, so it’s got a great pedigree.
2005 Chateau du Pressac, St. Emilion ($38.95)
Moving on to the heavy hitters. I decanted both this and the Destieu for about an hour and a half before the tasting, and they were still tight. I’d say lay them both down for another 6-8 years. That being said, the Pressac was the more accessible of the two. Great structure, with French oak and vibrant acidity framing the concentrated fruit. More of a red-fruit spectrum on this wine, with dark cherries and raspberries combining with minerality and that Bordeaux scorched earth character. It was even better the next day. This will be a beautiful wine; I thoroughly enjoyed both this and the Destieu, but if I had to pick one, it’d be the Pressac.
2005 Chateau Grand Destieu, St. Emilion ($41.50)
Tight as a drum, but you could see what’s there. This will end up being a bigger, more opulent wine than the Pressac, I think, with lush fruit and ample oak. More black fruit than the Pressac – black plums and currants, with a bit of black olive character as well. Again, great structure. 2005 was an ideal vintage – warm but not extremely hot, no rain, even ripening – and this wine will be a stunner in a half-dozen years.